Flood Details - 2010-01-02 - 2010-01-03

On 2-3 January, New Brunswick was hit by a snow storm accompanied by tidal storm surge of 6 to 8 m. The tidal storm caused severe flood damage in coastal communities. On 3rd January, Port Elgin remained in a state of emergency with dozens of families evacuated by boats and tractors from the swell of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The tidal storm surge lifted cottages from foundations and flooded dozens of streets, homes, and businesses. On 2nd January, Pointe-du-Chêne, near Shediac recorded the third highest water level in documented history. The community was temporarily stranded when its causeway flooded, and dozens of residents were isolated. Cape Tormentine shoreline was left with destruction of two large storage sheds containing fishing supplies. The remainder of the province faced an intense snowstorm. About 10,000 NB Power customers were without electrical power. High winds and heavy wet snow damaged the power lines.

The event was caused by strong easterly winds accompanied with a tidal surge, heavy rain, and snow.

On 2-3 January, an intense low pressure affected the Maritimes. Strong north-easterly and easterly winds produced extremely high water levels during high tide. Combined with on-shore wave action, this increased water levels by 1.7 metres (5 feet). Pointe-du-Chêne recorded water levels at 3 metres i.e. 1.4 metres above the average water level. On 2nd January, Fredericton's wind gust reached 72 km/hr during the day, 70 km/hr in Bathurst, 59 km/hr in Saint John, and 91 km/hr in Moncton. On 3rd January, Bathurst received 30 cm of snow, Moncton 21 cm, Fredericton 22 cm, and Saint John 12 cm.

Many homes and businesses were affected by coastal flooding and wave action. The greatest damages occurred in Port Elgin. The storm surge was an extremely unusual event for this geographic area. In Cape Tormentine,fishermen lost several thousand dollars worth of bait, gear, and other fishing supplies after storm surges tore two large storage sheds from their foundation and scattered their contents into the sea. The cost to repair each storage shed would reach $500,000. Highway 960 was badly eroded. The cost to repair the damage was about $300,000. In Westmorland County, the cost to repair the damage was $243,995. Total estimated repair cost was $1,043,995.